A fight is brewing over Tennessee legislation designed to bring more transparency to the state’s new private-school voucher program.
A House K-12 subcommittee Tuesday defeated Democratic Rep. Sam McKenzie’s bill designed to give lawmakers more information about the 20,000 students receiving private-school vouchers, mainly whether they were enrolled last year in private or public schools.
But Republican Rep. Jody Barrett, who opposed creation of the program last year, is sponsoring a separate bill, HB1544, that would provide lawmakers with even more information, including the family income of children receiving state funds to attend private schools.
The effort to shed more light on the $144 million program comes amid Gov. Bill Lee’s push to double the number of vouchers the state provides.
Lee told reporters this week no data “of any value” exists because the program is only one year old.
“The most important data is that parents know what’s best for their kids. And if they want a scholarship, then they should get one,” Lee said.
Before addressing questions about the voucher program, Lee often points out the state has increased public schools funding annually during his tenure.
Critics of vouchers call them an entitlement for private-school parents that will pull money away from public schools and put the state in financial jeopardy.
McKenzie, of Knoxville, saw his legislation, HB1052, die in the subcommittee Tuesday morning.
“They don’t want the public to know who’s getting the vouchers,” McKenzie said afterward. “It’s obvious.”
The state’s own financial projection on the measure that passed last year predicted 66% of the students who receive the funds, $7,300 each, would come from private schools. McKenzie estimated that number at 80-90% and accused the state of “giving away money” when it can’t afford the program.
Barrett’s bill asks for more information, including the county residence of each student, the school they were attending when they applied for the funds, the private school where each recipient is enrolled, the grade level for each student, annual household income and the total cost, which would take in third-party contracts, administrative expense, advertising and marketing and number of “scholarships.”
Barrett, of Dickson, is trying to smooth the path for his bill and said he tells lawmakers his measure is “not a relitigation” of the private-school voucher bill but an attempt to gather more information to help lawmakers make decisions.
Proponents of the legislation pushed it in 2025 by saying it was designed to help low-income children escape struggling schools. But the Department of Education has declined to release figures for the number of students enrolled in private schools before receiving the funds, saying it is not required by state law.
“If the vast majority of this money is going to students who are already enrolled in private schools, to the detriment of folks who applied for it and weren’t able to get it, then that’s an issue we need to know about, and we need to make adjustments as we go,” Barrett said.
Half of the vouchers this year go to students from households at 300% of the federal poverty level, more than $96,000 for a family of four, and the other half go to families with no maximum income.
Republican Rep. Mark White of East Memphis, chairman of the House Education Committee, said he voted against McKenzie’s bill because he didn’t think it was the right “tool.”
Asked about Barrett’s bill, White said he is studying it. He raised concerns about student privacy and the release of information but said he could support a generic measure showing how many of the program’s recipients come from public or private schools.
In addition, students receiving the vouchers are required to take the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program test or a nationally standardized achievement test. But the results aren’t made public.
Lee acknowledged Monday that the state needs to find ways to improve the program, and he said accountability measures could be added. But his main focus is expanding private-school vouchers to 40,000 students at a cost of $310 million next year.
This article was originally published by the Tennessee Lookout.
